Stock's on 2nd restaurant in Harrisburg celebrates 20 years

Twenty years ago Stock's on 2nd restaurant was a newcomer along North Second Street in Harrisburg.

In February 1998, Stephen and KJ Weinstock opened the restaurant at 211 N. Second St. and, along with the FireHouse Restaurant, helped to fuel a renaissance along the street. Their restaurant was the place to be seen in Harrisburg among young professionals, politicians and others. (The video, above, includes photos of Stock's from throughout the years.)

This week the Weinstocks will be celebrating the anniversary with a special menu rolled back to 1998 prices.

When the couple opened the restaurant, Second Street was not a destination. The Golden Sheaf operated at the Hilton Harrisburg and Scott's Grille, Zembie's Sports Tavern, Pep Grill, Zephyr and The Spot were among the handful of establishments serving food.

Stock's brought something new to the block - a casual upscale atmosphere and a continental American menu with some Asian and southern influences.

The Weinstocks could have opened the restaurant anywhere. They said the chose Harrisburg for a reason.

'We thought we'd bring the big city to the little city,' KJ said, at the time.

They opened Stock's in the former Matangos Deli and Convenience Store. Crews sandblasted the building's copper facade to a shine, and bricked the front sidewalk. Inside, carpenters built wooden booths and a partition that separated the bar area and restaurant.

Other restaurants and bars followed on the street, from Politesse and Neato Burrito to Cafe Fresco, and long forgotten spots such as Haydn's on Pine and Max's.

Nearly 16 years later in 2014, the Weinstocks reinvented Stock's, shedding the formality for a farm-to-fork restaurant with an American whiskey bar.

The couple also own Carley's Ristorante in Harrisburg and operate a catering business and special events venue, Stock's Manor in Upper Allen Township.

For the anniversary the restaurant is rolling back prices on some original menu items Feb. 21-28. Menu items include:

Oyster Bed-three oysters tucked into French puff pastry with spinach pesto and roasted garlic for $7.

Artichoke hearts with crabmeat and a black olive bechamel sauce for $7

Grilled monkfish with a crab and potato hash for $15

Sauteed chicken breast with three onion compote over saffron linguini for $13